OCZ Vertex/Agility/Solid2 Arowana Firmware Update 1.0.9

This update runs within Windows and you MUST have the SATA controller set
to IDE, AHCI will cause it to fail. You will need another HDD connected to be
running Windows from, you cannot update the drive Windows is running from.

This is a fully destructive update, your drive will be erased and then the
new FTL will be flashed to the drive. Make a backup of anything on the drive
that you need, there will be NO way back from this flash.

When the drive is successfully flashed you will see firmware version 3.55
after this update.

If you are returned any other number, the drive cannot be
updated to the Arowana FTL.

If you cannot run the above identifier, then look at the serial number on the
bar code sticker, it starts with "SN" and is then followed by 15 digits. Count
in to the 7th digit, this is the last number of the year it was made. 7 for
2007, 8, for 2008, 9 for 2009, 0 for 2010, and 1 for 2011.
The next 2 digits after the year are the month it was made, numbers higher than
12 just indicate it was labeled in the US, so start over with the months - 13 =
January, 14 = Feb, etc.
If your drive was made prior to December 2009 (so you see 912 for the 7th, 8th,
and 9th digits in the serial number), you will not be able to update to this FTL.

Anything made after December 2009 has a chance, but not a 100% chance. We did
not make huge numbers of 34nm Nand Vertex/Agility/Solid2 drives so even though
you may have a August 2010 drive doesn't mean it will be eligible. The best way
is the above identifier, it tells you with 100% certainty.

The updater itself will fail if the drive is ineligible, but it is best if
you know before you try. Even if the updater fails, the drive may still be
erased, so please be prepared for this. This update is performed at the users
risk, OCZ will not be responsible for lost data.

Follow these steps to update your drive:

Unzip the above download into its own folder. You will see the updater
EXE, a release note RTF file (instructions) and a folder named "util".

Right click on "arowanaUpdate" and select "Run as Administrator"

A DOS box will open and you will be asked to select the drive to update
as seen in this picture:

Select the drive you want to update by pressing the appropriate number
key.

A confirmation that you want to destroy all data will appear, you must
type YES (in all caps) to continue:

If the drive you selected cannot be updated, you will see this error
window pop up. If you see this, click OK and the windows will close and you
are finished, you cannot update your drive with Arowana.

If your drive is eligible, then you will see some dots appear in the
window as the process starts. This process may take as much as 15 minutes to
complete (Less than 15 is quite common, the important thing here is
patience). Do not interrupt the process, you will be notified of a
failure or the window will simply close once the update is complete. Here is
a picture of the window during the update:

Once the process is complete, power down the system, then power back up
and enjoy your new drive .

Here are the performance differences:

You have the Original 1.7 firmware on the left (or top depending on your
forum viewing width) and then the Arowana 3.55 on the right (or bottom). These 2
tests are on the same physical drive. I benched Arowana, then wiped it out and
put 1.7 back on it. 16 pieces of Intel 34nm Nand, identifier 661102. You can
also see that 3.55 has some Over Provisioning that 1.7 does not.